Home minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said Pakistan will not succeed in its “conspiracy” to divide India along religious lines.

Rajnath Singh at a function to honour the families of martyrs of security forces at Kathua, Jammu on Sunday. (PTI)

Home minister Rajnath Singh on Sunday said Pakistan will not succeed in its “conspiracy” to divide India along religious lines.

Addressing a function to mark Martyr’s Day in Kathua district, Singh said: “We were divided in 1947 on the basis of religion. We have not been able to forget that... All Indians are brothers, whether they are born from the womb of a Hindu or Muslim mother.”

Claiming that India was the only place in the world where 72 Islamic sects co-exist in peace, he said his role as the country’s home minister would be to ensure that everybody was taken along on the road to development. “The whole world is fearful of the Islamic State and its rise. But the terror outfit has failed to spread its roots in India, and I give full credit for that to the Muslim community,” Singh added.

The home minister claimed India was ready to help Pakistan if it was serious about eradicating terrorism from its territory. “We want to live in peace with Pakistan, but it has been sponsoring a proxy war against us,” Singh said. “Every Indian prime minister wanted to mend relations with Pakistan, but it did not understand the language of peace. It attacked India four times, but our brave soldiers gave them a fitting reply.”

Singh claimed Pakistan’s politics of hatred would only result in its own downfall.